“ Developing a Kingdom Mentality”
Romans 12:1-2
We must have a “Kingdom Mentality”. That mandate is inside every one of us; God put it there.
Jesus Christ came to earth, died on the cross, and rose from the dead to put a ring of sonship on everyone’s finger, to bring us back into fellowship with Him so that we might assume our rightful place as His children and as citizens in His Kingdom. Many of us taking that step will require a change or renewing of our minds to get rid of “pigpen thinking”. These are Paul’s words to the Roman believers in Romans 12:1-2.
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Romans 12:1-2
Paul was addressing people who had placed their faith and trust in Jesus as Savior and Lord. Many of them still needed to undergo a change of mindset, although they were children of God by faith. They still had a “pigpen” mentality of thinking like slaves.
It is possible for a person to be “saved”, but not “converted”. Salvation takes place instantly. This is when our sins are cleansed by the blood of Jesus, as we trust Him by faith. Conversion can take a long time as we learn how to think, live, and act as children of God. It is like moving from the “ghetto” into the “mansion”. We bring old habits and ghetto mentality with us, and change gradually over time.
Paul is telling us to bring our bodies under control. STOP
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Drinking
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Stealing
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Smoking
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Lying
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Using Illegal Drugs
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Engaging in Illicit and Immoral Sexual Activities
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Playing around with Pornography
Break off unhealthy relationships. Bring our bodies under subjection; keep our bodies and minds pure.
We must learn to “manage our body” and get it in order; it is our legal house. If we lose it, we cannot do anything else. WE CANNOT SERVE GOD effectively if we are “addicted to tobacco, alcohol, and drugs”. The Lord cannot bless us if we are “shacking up or abusing our minds and bodies” in any way or living in any manner that is contrary to His revealed will. He wants us to bring our bodies into subjection and present it to Him as “Living Sacrifices” from which we can receive great honor and glory.
Paul said, “Be transformed by the renewing of our Mind.” He is saying, “Even though you have been born again, you still have a mental problem”. We have the Holy Ghost, but not the Spirit of the Holy Ghost. We have the anointing, but not the Spirit of the anointing. We need to change our thinking. The transformation that Paul is talking about involves a “Complete Revolution of Our Mental State”.
We must learn to think like “Kings” again; to lay hold of this spirit and attitudes of “Kings”. This is why kingdom citizenship is really all about leadership. It is about kingship and ruling a domain. It is not about being low, humble, and poor in the false, demeaning way that so many of us think. Kingdom citizenship is about recognizing our place and rights through Christ as citizens of God’s Kingdom, and claiming those rights so that we can fulfill God’s Kingdom purpose in our world. It is about taking back what we lost because of our sins and disobedience. Our Kingdom faith is about claiming and living out our “Dominion Mandate”.
Bishop George W. Ayers
